Aerovelo's projects have attracted an incredibly diverse and passionate group of individuals with a desire to do something incredible. The core of the design teams have been primarily engineering students and young professionals, but the projects would not have been possible without the extended network of community volunteers, friends and family. Aerovelo was started by, and continues to be led by, co-founders Todd Reichert and Cameron Robertson:
Todd Reichert, Founder
(PhD, Aerospace Engineering, U of T)
Todd is the muscle behind Aerovelo's human-powered vehicles. He is driven by a desire to tackle problems that are out of the ordinary and is fearless in his pursuit of breaking engineering and physical boundaries. Taking up speed-skating in 2010, Todd rose to national competition level within a year. Aerovelo has challenged him to take his athleticism to another level. With an output of 1 horsepower for 1 minute, Todd's legs have powered the flights of the world's first human-powered ornithopter (Snowbird) in 2010, clinched the Sikorsky Prize in 2013 by powering the helicopter Atlas, and earned Todd the title of World's Fastest Human by travelling an incredible 89.59 mph in the Eta speedbike. Earning his PhD in Aerospace Engineering at the University of Toronto, Todd’s specialty also lies in the aerodynamic design of both aircraft and streamlined land-vehicles, with a specific interest in blending the functional and the beautiful.
Cameron Robertson, Founder
(MASc, PEng, Aerospace Engineering Graduate, U of T)
Cameron is passionate about inspiring public interest in science, technology, and environmentally-conscious engineering. Aerovelo’s projects are an exciting platform for this outreach and an engaging challenge requiring innovation and creativity. Cameron graduated University of Toronto Engineering Science (Aerospace) in 2008, and earned his MASc from U of T Institute for Aerospace Studies in 2009. His expertise includes structural design and optimization, advanced composite materials, and material selection for lightweight aerostructures. In addition to Eta, Snowbird, Atlas, and ongoing work in speedbikes, he spent 2 years in industry developing small unmanned aircraft systems. Cameron enjoys rock climbing, squash, sailing and kitesurfing in his free time.
